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The Multidimensional Assessment of Parenting Scale (MAPS): Development and Psychometric Properties
Justin Parent1,2, Rex Forehand1
1Department of Psychological Science, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT 05405.
Journal of Child and Family Studies
|October 24, 2017
Summary
Researchers developed the Multidimensional Assessment of Parenting Scale (MAPS) to improve parenting practice measurement. This new scale offers reliable and valid assessments across child developmental stages.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Psychometrics
Background:
- Accurate measurement of parenting practices is crucial for clinical and research settings.
- Existing measures may lack comprehensive psychometric properties or applicability across developmental stages.
- Advancing parenting assessment requires a robust, validated scale.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a new, psychometrically sound measure of parenting practices.
- To establish a factor structure encompassing positive and negative parenting dimensions.
- To ensure the measure's relevance across diverse child developmental stages.
Main Methods:
- A five-stage empirical approach was used to select and refine items from established scales.
- 1,790 parents were recruited online across three cohorts.
- Data analysis focused on factor structure, reliability, and initial validity using longitudinal data.
Main Results:
- The Multidimensional Assessment of Parenting Scale (MAPS) was successfully developed.
- MAPS demonstrated a factor structure with positive/negative dimensions of warmth/hostility and behavioral control.
- The scale showed strong reliability and initial support for validity across developmental stages.
Conclusions:
- The Multidimensional Assessment of Parenting Scale (MAPS) is a reliable and valid tool for assessing parenting practices.
- MAPS provides a comprehensive measurement applicable to young children through adolescents.
- This new scale advances the assessment of parenting in clinical and research contexts.
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